Search This Blog

How to achieve the ultimate goal

The measure of value of a person is directly proportional to the measure in which he holds the following qualities:1.Pre-disposition to think critically2.Knowledge 3.Self control

With these qualities every man can achieve his goal weather he be a philosopher, businessman, Sufi or even a school going student.

Critical thinking has the following components:1.Rules of logic2.Socratic Method: adoption and comfort level with it – the heart of critical thinking3.Values: accepting every idea after putting it through an: “intellectual due process”, however difficult that may be either socially or against one’s preferences4.An upside-down worldview: awareness that many things in the real world work differently from how they first appear

It develops by acquiring knowledge of science and thus understanding the body of knowledge experimentally proved by scientists ,whether this be natural sciences or the social sciences. It also requires lateral thinking in order re-pattern, previously held beliefs and notions about how the world works, and align it with how it really works.

The method required is that of “deep thinking through asking questions i.e. the Socratic Method”.

A beautiful way to develop self-control: an "abstract" exercise is given by the following pillars of Islam:1. Praying five times a day with regularity and conviction2. Fasting in the month of Ramzan for a period of approximatly 30 days3. Hajj pilgrimage4. Giving of Zakat, which is money given to the deserving out of one's earnings

Note that the reason lust is bad is because it requires one's emotional capital and time and takes away from one his "self-control". Ego, melodrama and a number of other things are bad for the same reason.

With the above three qualities present one can achieve any goal and so one must try to develop these three qualities.

The ultimate goal as i understand it is happiness.

While improving these qualities the freedom one is gifted with is beautifully captured by the following shair of Amjad Siraj:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

I saw the movie for the umpteenth time last night and I finally got it.

This is what the movie says:

1) In every game and con there is always a victim and there is always an opponent. It's good to know when you are the former so you can become the latter.

2) But the question is how do you prepare yourself for this game?

3) You only get smater by playing a smarter opponent.

4) The smarter the game the smarter the opponent

5) Checkers is an example of such a game. Chess is a better game. Debate is an even better opportunity to learn and so on.

6) But the question is where does the game stop? or one can ask what is the smartest game one can play?

7) The answer according to the movie is: "The game of con you play with yourself".

------------------------------------------------------------------------------The text below has been added on 3 Dec 2008 and is based on a comment posted on October 30, 2008, at time 4:12 PM. I have only recently understood what this person meant and it is …

My journey so far has been about discovering the meta rules of how the self works. The essence of what I have learnt is that the self can change and in fact does change every time it undergoes an experience. Where any experience is significant because of the meaning it carries for us. It means something to us by the fact: it changes our feelings from state (state a) to another state (state b). Where this movement between states is a process we can call witnessing. The exercise of witnessing can be powerful and enriching. In fact if we could communicate what we have witnessed through poetry or through prose, perhaps with the aid of metaphors, we could share these experiences with our family, friends and with the larger community. Thus to go in retrospect and search for meaning in the experiences we have had can help us grow mature, become stronger and make us more aware.

1) She should be a home maker. 10 on a scale of 102) I should be able to fall in love with her and her with me … 7 on a scale of 10.

First criteria:

10 on a scale of 1-10 for this criteria because I consider my family my second self. The better my partner will be at making my family the best the better off my second self will be. Who doesn’t want to aim for the best? In accordance with this she should have the best of the characteristics that every home maker should have:

1) Intelligent2) Practical3) Ability to take stress and bounce back – agility of mind4) High level of commitment5) Principled6) Caring7) Want her children to be the best8) Want to learn how to make her children the best

Of course there is an ideal woman out there who would rank very high in all these areas. But then I have to be practical too. I would want to marry the most ideal woman who is compatible with me. Compatibility is covered in the second criteria.

About Me

It isn't worthy to compete or concern ourself with the other's intelligence , wisdom, perception, capacity to love. Certainly not wealth, knowledge, a social standing. I think a sense of purpose, that in us carries us, that's worth it all.